Wrong Reflection
by Dream Wreaver
Summary: It was like looking in a Funhouse mirror: the vision before you got twisted and warped to the point where it wasn't even your reflection anymore. It was something off, something unnatural, something wrong
1. Chapter 1

Hello my lovely followers and new readers simply interested in this story! So, what is one of the better shows on modern television (in this writer's opinion anyways)? Miraculous Ladybug of course! I am absolutely in love with the premise (obviously since I love magical girl anime) and Marinette and Adrien as Chat Noir are the biggest, most adorable dorks on the face of the planet! I adore watching them and I can't wait to see the internet break when Nick airs the dubbed Valentine's day episode!

Anywho, this is my FIRST attempt at writing with the characters. Please let me know in the reviews if anyone seems out of character and just as fair warning: most of the characterizations I'm using are from the English version. I don't think there are many differences from the French/Korean versions but I'm putting that out there just to be on the safe side.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot and Lyra, all other properties belong to their respectful owners

Enjoy!

* * *

It started out as any other normal day. A normal day in the life of less than normal Marinette Dupain-Cheng. And like any other normal day, she and her best friend Alya were running late.

"Come on Marinette!" Alya shouted as they ran down the sidewalks of the Parisian streets, on-comers quickly dodging the two teenagers, "We're gonna be late, again! I can't get a detention, what if another Akuma attack happens? I have to be there to report it for the Ladyblog!"

"I know I know!" Marinette called as she lagged slightly behind, only able to keep up thanks to Alya's severe grip on her wrist, "I'm going as fast as I can!" a white lie actually, but if Alya knew just how fast she could run her secret would be out in a second. Alya was far too observant for her own good sometimes.

They ran a few more blocks before Alya's manacle of a hand twisted along Marinette's wrist. What Marinette hadn't noticed, too preoccupied with keeping the speed of her friend, was the person directly in her path. Alya couldn't pull her to the side in time, and Marinette collided with the stranger in front of her. The impact forced both of them away as they tumbled to the ground. Marinette was the first to recover.

"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, "Is there anything I can do to-" her voice petered out as she saw a familiar mop of blonde hair, and an even more familiar white jacket and pair of blue jeans. Of all the people she could have run over, it just _had_ to be her classmate and secret crush: Adrien Agreste, half-hunched over and searching for something. A high-pitched squeak escaped her as she clapped her hands over her mouth; Marinette was absolutely mortified. Her already far too active imagination kicked into overdrive and she was sure that Adrien was going to hate her forever now.

Before anything worse could happen, her companion on the ground spoke,

"No, no; you don't have to apologize," that was funny, Adrien sounded off today. His voice was husky and yet, slightly more feminine than usual, "It was partly my fault too, I wasn't looking where I was going," Adrien looked up from his search on the ground in her direction.

Was it just Marinette, or did his face look more rounded? It was almost heart-shaped thanks to the chubby cheeks that somehow appeared out of nowhere overnight. But his eyes were still the same dreamy green as always. That much was a relief.

Just then Adrien squinted at her, almost as though trying to place her in his memory. That was odd, he knew her name since she'd talked –well, managed to make words come out of her mouth in some kind of coherent fashion- with him before. When Marinette opened her mouth to remind him of who she was he reached out and planted a hand smack in the middle of her face. Marinette blinked nonplussedly a few times before recoiling back. She glanced at Alya, still on her feet, who shrugged in confusion before looking back at the boy on the ground.

Adrien's hand recoiled close to him and he looked both slightly horrified and really embarrassed, "Uh…" he drew out the filler, "Was that your face?" he asked timidly.

"Um, yeah!" Marinette said far too cheerfully, attempting to laugh the situation off.

"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry!" Adrien exclaimed, "I honestly didn't mean to, but I can't see a foot in front of me without my glasses. Have you seen them?" Adrien moved his upper body to fully face Marinette on the ground and Marinette held back a startled gasp.

It wasn't actually Adrien she had run into, but dammed if they didn't look almost exactly like him. The only thing that differentiated the two besides the voice and the baby cheeks? Two soft yet obvious swells protruding from the _girl's_ chest. It couldn't have been more obvious now if Alya had smacked Marinette over the back of the head with the word 'clue'. This wasn't Adrien, but she –whoever _she_ was- looked almost identical to him. From a distance at the right angle: no one would be able to tell them apart.

"Hang on a second," Alya said from off to the side, "Are these your glasses?" she handed over a pair of spectacles more suited for an owl's face than a person's, that had skidded towards her feet during the commotion. Carefully the girl placed them on the bridge of her nose and blinked in a rather catlike manner. Then her vision appeared to adjust to the calibration of the lenses and she was able to see clearly. She smiled her thanks at Alya and turned to Marinette, reaching out her hand. Marinette grabbed hold and together the two pushed themselves to their feet.

"Thank you so much," the girl said as she brushed a stray lock of hair aside, smoothing her entire hairstyle out in the process. Marinette noticed that she was tall, taller than any girl she had ever met before, "Now, allow me to help with your bags."

"No, no!" Marinette was quick to say, "It's fine if you don't,"

"But I already have," the girl gave a smile as she held up Marinette's backpack by the hook strap.

Now that Marinette knew that this girl was a girl she noticed a few other things that made her feel a little foolish for confusing the two. For example, her hair was slightly messier than Adrien usually had his, and she had a dimple in her left cheek. She was tall and lithe, but full-figured: a combination Marinette had only ever seen on magazine covers. And, when this girl smiled it was more easygoing and impish than Marinette had ever seen her from classmate. In fact, it reminded her of someone else she saw on a near daily basis.

The clothes were also different, her designer's eye noted. They almost looked a bit too small for her figure, as though she was borrowing someone else's. The olive t-shirt she wore under the half-sleeved white hoodie was a little tight against her frame: the material stretching over her curves and not quite making down to her waist, leaving a bit of her midriff exposed when coupled with the low-slung jeans she wore. A light blue color instead of the denim blue Adrien preferred.

Belatedly she realized she had been blatantly scrutinizing the girl for over a minute now, leaving her schoolbag to dangle in the air. With a crimson face Marinette hurriedly grabbed the bag and looked anywhere else but the girl's eyes.

Alya thankfully stepped in to salvage the situation, "Sorry about that," she said smoothly, "My friend here is an aspiring fashion designer and can't help herself from analyzing people's outfits."

The girl laughed and waved it off, "It's no big deal," she replied, "I'm used to people staring, trust me."

"Great," Alya said, "I'm sorry my friend ran into you earlier."

The girl continued to smile, almost grinning as she answered, "There's nothing to forgive," she assured them, "After all, it wasn't entirely her fault." Alya, and this is my best friend Marinette.

"What were you doing that you didn't notice my friend and I barreling down the sidewalk?" Alya pressed, journalist instincts probing for a story.

"I just caught up in memories," the girl replied, "It's been quite some time, and I'm just so glad to be back in Paris again," here she took on a sheepish expression and scratched at the back of her head, "I guess I got a little distracted."

Alya nodded, taking it as a perfectly acceptable explanation, "You're not the first person Paris has had that effect on, I'm sure you wont be the last. I'm Alya by the way, and this," she pulled Marinette to her side, "is my best friend Marinette."

The girl gave a more courteous smile than the one's they'd seen previously and slightly tilted her head to the side, "A pleasure to meet you both. I'm Lyrabelle, Lyrabelle Composeur. Please, call me Lyra."

"Compseur huh?" Alya raised a brow, "That name sounds familiar,"

Lyra nodded, "I'm sure it does, my –Aiyah!" she said as she pulled out her cellphone, silencing an alarm she had set, "Oh no," Lyra groaned, "I better get going or else I'm going to be late, and if I'm late my father's gonna _kill_ me!" she slipped the mobile into her back pocket, "It was really great to meet you, but I have to go. I hope I'll see you guys around sometime?"

"Here's hoping," Alya said as she waved goodbye, Marinette nodded and waved in agreement.

Lyra gave that all-too-familiar grin as she turned on her heel and started sprinting away.

"She was nice," Marinette said.

"She was, and yet you had the same problem talking to her as you do with Adrien!" Alya chastised her.

"Can you blame me?" Marinette asked, "She looks exactly like a female version of him!"

"Yeah," Alya agreed, "But she certainly doesn't act like him."

"What do you mean?"

"She seems a little more," the redhead searched for an appropriate word, "open?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Adrien's nice and all, but there seems to be a bit of a distance he puts between himself and others. Almost like he's hiding something…" Alya trailed off in thought before remembering something, "Shoot! We gotta get going too or we're going to be late for class!"

Marinette's eyes widened with realization while Alya grabbed her hand and started the cycle all over again.

They had made it, just barely. Alya and Marinette had come sliding into their seats not even two minutes before the teacher came striding through the door. Miss Bustier halted at the doorframe and spoke to someone out of view for a moment before continuing on to stand in front of the desk as usual.

"Good morning class," she greeted cheerfully, "I have some exciting news. Starting today we will have a new student joining us," she motioned toward the door and gestured for the person outside to come in.

And who should come swaggering in, hips swinging and manner confident, but the girl Alya and Marinette (mostly Marinette) had literally run into this morning: Lyra.

"Good morning everyone," she greeted politely, "My name is Lyrabelle Composeur and I'm very pleased to meet you. I only have request, that you all call me Lyra, Lyrabelle is too much."

Before anyone else could speak Chloe gave a shrill gasp, "Composeur? You mean the same Composeur of Composeur Costumier? The most famous costumier company in the world?"

Lyra turned her attention to Chloe and nodded, "Yes, Maron Composeur is my father."

Chloe nearly swooned where she stood. Lyra gave a nervous smile and scanned the rest of the classroom.

"Are there any other questions anyone has for me?" silence answered her, yet Lyra continued to make eye contact with each of her fellow classmates. However when her gaze rested on Adrien Marinette noticed the immediate change in expression.

Her eyes went wide for a moment and her mouth dropped open. Then before anyone could say or do anything Lyra had lunged forward and swept Adrien up in an embrace.

"Adrien!" she cried happily as she proceeded to squeeze the life out of him, "I'm so happy to see you!" she loosened her grip enough to look up at him since she had lifted him high above her head in her enthusiasm, "I knew we were going to be at the same school but to be in the same class together? This is wonderful!"

Adrien gave a small chuckle, "Lyra, we're already going to be seeing each other every day while at home."

Lyra scoffed, "If I know your father, and I can assume I do because he's the same as mine, he'll have you booked with all sorts of activities. And in that mausoleum of a house I'll be lucky if I catch one glimpse of you!"

"We'll be taking the same car to school in the mornings, which we would've done today if _somebody_ hadn't overslept," his tone was teasing and mocking, two traits Adrien's classmates didn't normally associate with him.

"You know it takes more than a week for jetlag to stop kicking my butt," Lyra pointed out, "it's hard for me to be ready for eight when it still feels like two to me."

"Well the way I see it you've only got four more days," Adrien quipped, "Just in time for the weekend, the one time you're _allowed_ to sleep in."

"Oh ha ha ha mister high-and-mighty," Lyra rolled her eyes.

"Hard not to be when you've got me a good three feet off the ground."

"Think of it as a belated birthday gift, considering puberty hasn't given you that growth spurt you've been whining about for the past fourteen years!" Lyra quipped as she gently set him on his feet, "Anyways, I would've still been able to take the car with you if I hadn't had to ransack your room for something to wear."

"My room?" Adrien raised a brow, "Why would you need clothes from my room?"

"When I got out of the shower this morning the outfit I'd laid out was soaking wet, so I obviously couldn't wear it. Then when I went to grab a spare outfit from my duffel bag it was empty: I think one of the maids took everything in it to be laundered," Lyra shrugged, "Crazy stroke of bad luck, huh?"

"Yeah," Adrien agreed, sounding a bit nervous, "Bad luck,"

Marinette wanted to scream while all this was happening. She was so incredibly jealous that Lyra got to live in Adrien's house with him, got to eat and go to school and back with him, got tease and joke with him and just have a general conversation while she couldn't even string a coherent sentence while he was around. But as she watched them banter back and forth some more she noticed what Lyra had meant with her dig. The female blonde _was_ taller than Adrien, not by much, but enough to be noticeable. And when she really took a good look at them side by side she noticed that they really did look a lot a like. They could have been twins with how much they resembled each other.

Just as Marinette had that thought, Alya gave voice to it,

"Are you guys twins or something?" she asked.

The pair looked at Alya for a moment, then at each other, and then back at Alya. A moment of awkward silence passed before the two started laughing.

"Twins?" Lyra managed to get out between giggles, "We're not twins, we're cousins."

"Yeah," Adrien chimed in, "Our mothers were twin sisters, and we take after them."

"What do you mean by 'were'?" Chloe asked, rather insensitively.

Adrien and Lyra's expressions of happiness instantly dropped. Her hand found his and their fingers wove together, squeezing tight.

"That," Lyra tried to give a cheerful expression, but it only came out pained and forced, "is something we'd rather not talk about."

Another awkward silence descended over the class. Lyra gave one last squeeze before letting go and she turned to Chloe, "I don't blame you for asking, it is something that happened a long time ago: but it's one of those wounds you never really heal from."

"Alright," Miss Bustier intervened, "Lyra why don't you take a seat?"

"Sure," Lyra replied, "is anywhere fine?"

"Anywhere there's room."

"Okay," she began scanning the room one more, this time coming to a stop on Marinette and Alya, "Alya! Marin! You guys are in this class too?"

She rushed to the desk, an excited grin on her face and all traces of melancholy gone.

"Yeah," Alya replied, "Funny coincidence huh?"

"Please it's more like fate!" Lyra countered, "Miss Bustier?" she said as she glanced at the teacher, "Do you mind if I sit with Alya and Marin? Otherwise I'd have to sit all by myself," whatever look she'd given the teacher was enough to convince her, as Miss Bustier nodded her assent and allowed Lyra to pull up a chair next to Marinette.

The lessons began and continued without issue until the lunch break, when Miss Bustier dismissed them.

Immediately Lyra yanked Marinette out of her seat and gave her a hug, confusing everyone still in the classroom.

"I'm sorry," Lyra apologized as she let go, stepping behind Marinette and running her hands down the designer's arms and the line of her back, "But I've been holding this in all morning! I'm jealous of you Marin!" she squealed, as though delighted instead of actually envious.

"Jealous?" Marinette questioned, "Why would you be jealous of me?"

"Why wouldn't I be? I mean, you have the _perfect_ figure! Don't you think so Adiekins?"

Adrien stopped packing away his books and stared at his cousin and, by extension, Marinette. Marinette felt her face begin to heat up.

"Um, I guess so?" Adrien replied, more than unsure of his answer.

"Um, you guess so?" Lyra repeated in a mocking tone, "Don't you have eyes? Just look at her!" she said as she lifted one of Marinette's arms, "She's so slender, and graceful, and petite," Lyra gushed, "Oh! You'd be a perfect Prima Marin!" she sighed dreamily.

"Prima?" Alya asked, "Where is all this coming from?" she looked to Adrien, "Mind filling us all in _Adiekins_?"

Adrien blushed at the use of his cousin's childhood nickname, "Lyra here is a dancer. She loves ballet and she's obsessed with the figures of people, especially if she thinks they'd be perfect for ballet," he turned to his cousin, "That reminds me, why are you here at this school Lyra?"

Lyra sighed and stepped out from behind Marinette, "You got me: typically the exchange students go to the sister school when they come abroad. But father insisted that I catch up on my studies while here in France. Even the best all-girls academy in New York is too lenient for his tastes. I'm only allowed to go to the academy on the weekends, and that's only if I keep up my grades and my extracurricular activities. At this rate I'll never get to study my dance, and my school's company needs me!"

Marinette, overcome with curiosity, asked, "Why's that?"

"Because, in the case of my school: I'm the Prima," Lyra replied as though everyone should know what she was talking about.

Adrien shook his head, "Try using layman's terms please,"

Lyra nodded, "Right, sorry. It means that I'm the principal dancer in my company: specifically for all the male leads in our recitals."

"You dance the male parts?" Nino asked in confusion, "But you're a girl."

"Back in America I attend a very prestigious all-girls academy. I'm part of the dance company and because I'm so tall and have the strength needed, I've been chosen to play all the male leads throughout my time there. But in my school, all of the taller girls play the male roles," Lyra explained, "And if I don't keep up with my training here, I'll never break out of the male role. This is my chance to study the female dance routines, if I can prove myself I can get into an internationally acclaimed dance company: like the Russian Ballet!" her eyes were starry, and to Alya Lyra looked the same way Marinette did when talking about her dreams of becoming a world renown fashion designer.

"Sounds like a lot of work," Alya commented.

"it is," Lyra agreed, "But it'll all be worth it in the end. I know it!" she turned to Marinette and Alya, "So, you guys are friends with Adrien and Nino?"

"Yeah," Alya replied, "Why, do they never talk about us?"

"Well, I don't talk with Nino much. But Adrien's never said a word about having female friends, at least: not normal ones like you."

"And who's abnormal?" Alya asked.

"That little snob, Chloe," Lyra rolled her eyes in disgust, "Of course, I already knew about her."

Alya raised a brow, "You did?"

"Naturally, she might not remember: but her, Adrien and I used to play together when we were little. She was spoiled rotten even back then, and I can see it's only gotten worse. My favorite thing to do when we had to play together was to play hide and seek. I'd find Adrien first and then 'accidently' forget to find Chloe until it was time for her and her father to leave. And the way I always got out of trouble was by telling her she was just too good of a hider," Lyra chuckled at the recollection.

"So you and Adrien used to play together?" Alya pressed.

"All the time," Lyra affirmed, "Why?"

"Think there's anything about him you could tell us? We don't really have to chance to get to know him since it seems like he's always jetting off to some photo-shoot or something."

Lyra's grin turned knowing, "Ah yes, my cousin the model. But don't let the cool façade fool you. My cousin is, and always has been, the biggest dork on the planet."

"Oh really?" Alya subtly nudged Marinette.

"Absolutely," Lyra went on, "When he was little he wanted to be a comedian. Not a bad choice of career, mind you, but his type of jokes…" she groaned.

"What were they?" Nino asked, genuinely curious by this information.

"Puns," Lyra deadpanned, "And not good ones, I mean like really, really bad ones. Of course, it might have been partly my fault since I laughed anyway and egged him on in pun-offs."

"Okay," Adrien cut in, "I think it's time to go," he said as he grabbed Lyra by the arm.

"What's the hurry cousin?" Lyra asked lackadaisically, "Afraid I'll ruin your rep?" her expression was reminiscent of one masked superhero Marinette fought with on a daily basis.

"No, but if we want to eat we need to get going now," he tugged again.

Lyra's eyes darted between Adrien and the rest of the group, twinkling with mischief when they settled on Marinette and Alya, "Fine," she acquiesced with her cousin's wishes, "Don't worry," she said to Alya and Marinette, "We'll get together sometime, and I'll tell you every embarrassing story about him I know."

"Come on!" Adrien pulled, finally managing to make his cousin move, "The car's waiting for us."

"car?" Lyra said on her way out, "Why would we need a car to go to the cafeteria?"

"Cafeteria? What's that?" Adrien asked.

"It's like a dining hall attached to the school where students go to get food and eat during the lunch period. It's a big thing in America, trust me."

"Well here in France, we don't do that…" Adrien began to explain as they exited the classroom.

Alya turned to Nino and Marinette, "So, what did you guys think of her?"

"She's so different from Adrien," Nino replied, "But I like it!" he grabbed his bag and headed out, "Later dudes!"

"And you Marinette? Did you like her?"

Marinette couldn't speak, she was too excited by the prospect of learning more about her crush. A stupid grin was plastered across her face and her eyes were wide with joy.

Alya chuckled, "I'll take that as a yes. Come on," she said as she nudged her friend, "Let's go get something to eat."

Early Friday morning, Adrien heard clamoring about somewhere in the house. Quietly he slipped out of bed and nudged at Plagg, his Kwami companion.

"Plagg," he whispered, prodding at the little black cat, "Plagg, wake up."

Plagg yawned and turned over, but said nothing.

"Plagg!" Adrien whispered a little louder.

"What?" Plagg whined, "Can't you see I'm dreaming of cheese?"

"Someone's in the house," Adrien whispered.

"No duh Captain obvious," Plagg replied, "Your dad always has servants around, even at this hour. What are you worried about? Go back to bed," Plagg turned over, fully intent on returning to dreamland.

Adrien huffed in exasperation before picking Plagg up between his thumb and index finger, "No one my father employs makes this much racket at this hour. We need to investigate."

"Why do we need to investigate?" Plagg complained, "Can't you just call security or whatever it is you have?"

"Quit complaining," Adrien said as he slipped out of his room and began making his way down the halls, "It sounds like whoever's there is in the kitchen, so if we scare them off, you can get a nice slice of Camenbert before you go back to sleep."

With the prospect of cheese in his future Plagg agreed to stay close to Adrien and together they crept down to the kitchen. What they saw in said room was the last thing they expected to see. Lyra, still in her pajamas no less, was at the cooking implements and working them like an expert, humming along to a song filtering from her sound-system. She flitted from one counter space to the next: cubing chicken fillets and placing them into a container, checking on something boiling in a pot at the stove, and singing along to the song that Adrien now recognized was in English. It took a few minutes to switch his brain over and understand.

" _I can't help it if I make a scene, steppin' out of my hot pink limousine. I'm turnin' heads and I'm stoppin' traffic when I pose they scream and when I joke they laugh. I've got a pair of eyes that they're getting lost in. They're hypnotized by my way of walkin'. I've got'em dazzled like a stage magician: when I point they look and when I talk they listen_ \- Oh!"

Lyra stopped and paused the music when she noticed her cousin in the room with her. Plagg, having decided the girl was no imminent threat to the city or Adrien had gone back to Adrien's room, deciding to remind his keeper of his promise later.

"Good morning Adrien," Lyra greeted brightly, turning back to the stove and taking the pot off the burner.

"Morning Lyra," Adrien slurred, still half-asleep and a bit bewildered by the scene before him.

"What are you doing up this early?" she asked.

"I could ask you the same question," he replied.

"This afternoon I'm going to be practicing at the dance academy. I was so excited I woke up early," Lyra explained.

"But why are you cooking?" Adrien asked.

"Well, I wanted to hang out with your friends and get to know them a little more. So I decided to make lunch for the five of us."

Adrien glanced over at the clock, "At six in the morning?"

"Well, this meal needs to be prepped," Lyra told him, "I bake the chicken and cook the noodles now and then it'll only take around five minutes to cook later."

"Okay, so what are you planning to make us?"

"Chicken stir-fry with rice noodles, bean sprouts, and sweet and sour sauce," Lyra said brightly, "It's one of my favorite meals to make!"

"Sounds good," Adrien yawned as he leaned against the fridge, "What were you listening to earlier?"

"Just a song from one of my favorite shows," Lyra waved the question off, "Speaking of which, have you been able to check out that show I recommended?"

"Which one? You send me five every time we talk," Adrien laughed.

"You know, the reboot?" Lyra raised a brow.

"That doesn't exactly narrow it down," Adrien replied.

Lyra sighed good-naturedly, "You know, the one involving your favorite golden-haired, sailor-suit wearing heroine?"

"Crystal?" Adrien asked, Lyra nodded, "Haven't had a chance yet. I've been pretty busy lately."

"Don't I know it," Lyra said with understanding, "Do you ever think sometimes our fathers are competing to see which kid can turn out more accomplished in life?"

"It certainly feels like it sometimes," Adrien agreed.

"Well, at least I have my dancing as an outlet for all the craziness. But what do you have Adie?"

He wanted to tell her not to worry, that he had an outlet where he was free to be the Adrien she had known him to be their whole lives, but he couldn't. She hadn't been Akumatized yet, but that wasn't to say it couldn't happen at all. So he stayed silent.

She looked at him wistfully, and Adrien knew she was going back to the past. To the days where he had been the way he was now as Chat Noir instead of Adrien Agreste: model in both academics and profession. Lyra sighed and poured a bit of olive oil over the rice noodles in the colander, working the substance through before placing the noodles in a container as well. Drying off her hands on a hand-towel she piled the chicken container on top and placed both in the fridge, setting a hand on Adrien's shoulder. They shared a look and an unspoken conversation, and then Lyra brightened up.

"Well anyways, we'll be having Nino, Alya, and Marin over for lunch today. So please, _try_ to have fun."

"I'll try," Adrien agreed.

"Promise?" Lyra that optimistically expectant look on her face and her pinkie held out. It was a stupid tradition carried over from childhood, one they both should have grown out of by now. But Lyra was his first friend, and despite the way she liked to prod at him and embarrass him, he knew it always came from a place of love. She didn't like the Adrien Agreste everyone thought they knew: the cool confident model who appeared to have it all. She liked the Adrien he was only able to be now when he was disguised as Chat Noir. She liked the cocky, dorky, bad-pun making Adrien that he had been as a child, and she wanted to see him again. Adrien found he couldn't deny her that much.

"Promise," he said, looping his pinkie with hers and shaking on it.

"Good," Lyra beamed and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Now let's go back to bed, this conversation has tired me out."

And together they left, each going to their separate rooms, only to wake an hour or so later when their alarms simultaneously went off.

* * *

So, Lyra in this story is supposed to be part of the inspiration for the side of Adrien that comes out when he's Chat Noir, and yes I will be using that spelling of the name because I like the way it looks better. Lyra is essentially what Adrien could have been without Chat Noir if his father had let him act his age.

Anyways: please leave a review and let me know what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

Hey everyone! Sorry this took so long but with all the events that happened in the last couple of weeks this story kinda got put on the backburner for a bit. But I'm back now and ready to share this with you all!

Just to denote from now on: italicized with undeline means that the character is speaking in English in the context of the show, for those of you who only watch the dub. Any other italics are more than likely used for emphasis, to denote a specific piece of work, song lyrics in any language, puns, or some other reason I can't think of at the moment.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and Lyra

Enjoy!

* * *

When Marinette and Alya arrived to class both Adrien and Lyra were already there. Immediately Marinette noticed that though the cousins were similar in looks, their senses of style contrasted. Adrien dressed the same as always: his olive shirt with a white button-down over it and his blue jeans. Lyra, on the other hand, had paired a black camisole and jeans with a black and purple plaid flannel, also unbuttoned with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows. Her hair was still tousled, like she hadn't bothered taming it after rolling out of bed; Adrien's was neatly put together, not a hair out of place. Adrien was sitting properly, and Lyra was rocking on the hind legs of her chair: one arm thrown over the seatback, feet braced against the edge of the desk and pushing slightly to keep her slow momentum. He was at least acting like he appeared ready to learn; her eyes flitted about the room every so often and she wasn't even making an effort to hide her bored expression.

When Lyra saw them, however, she instantly brightened up. Letting the front legs of the chair hit the floor with a thump, Lyra smiled and waved at the two girls.

"Marin! Alya! I'm glad to see you."

Marinette and Alya inwardly shook their heads, that was how Lyra greeted them every day. Nevertheless though, they appreciated the sentiment.

"Morning," Marinette said as she took her seat in the middle.

"Morning," Alya chorused as she slid in on the other side.

"Isn't it great?" Lyra asked.

"Isn't what great?" Alya asked in reply.

"The day, in general," Lyra replied.

"I'll admit, it's got the potential to be a great day," Alya conceded.

"Especially if Chloe doesn't show up," Lyra whispered conspiratorially.

The three shared a hushed round of laughter.

"Oh, before I forget: can you let your parents know you won't be home for lunch?" Lyra asked.

"Sure," Marinette agreed while Alya asked why.

"Adrien and I are inviting you guys and Nino over for lunch at our place today," Lyra replied, "I'm cooking and it's not like there isn't enough room in the limousine for the five of us."

Alya and Marinette looked at each other and shrugged. What the heck, they decided, it's not as if one lunch would kill them.

"Why did you suddenly decide to invite us over?" Marinette asked.

"As much as I love being with my cousin almost twenty-four/seven, I still get lonely. So we thought it would be nice to spend some time with friends today," Lyra glanced over at Adrien and then leaned in closer, lowering her voice, "Besides, it'll give you a chance to get closer to my cousin," she said with a grin.

Marinette turned bright red, "What?" she exclaimed loud enough to make Alya and Lyra flinch back and Adrien and Nino turn in their seats to stare at her questioningly.

Alya covered her mouth with her hand to disguise her mirth. Marinette kept opening and closing her mouth, looking like a bright red fish. Lyra simply tilted her head to the side and gave an angelic smile, motioning with her hand that the matter was none of the boys' concern and that they should return to their business.

When the coast was clear Lyra let out a small giggle and smiled at the inky-haired girl, "Your reactions are priceless Marin,"

Marinette stumbled for words, "Wh-what are you talking about?" she asked feigning ignorance, "I don't know where you got that idea from but you are _so_ wrong-" Marinette cut herself off upon seeing Lyra's indulgent smirk as she rested her cheek on her chin, realizing that her vehement protests were only digging her a deeper hole.

Instead, she decided to groan as she thunked her forehead down on her desk, "Ugh, how did you find out?"

"I'm not blind, and you're not exactly subtle," Lyra replied, "In fact, I'm sure the only reason he doesn't already know is because he's oblivious to romance."

Marinette lifter he head slightly, "You really think so?"

Lyra's smile turned warm and supportive, "Positive, he's always been like that. Boys usually are," she gave her friend a pat on the head, "Don't worry. Friends first, romance later."

The rest of the morning flew by and before they knew it the class was dismissed for lunch. Nino had been informed by Adrien and Alya and Marinette had already notified their parents and now the group was headed to the Agreste Mansion for lunch. Marinette was trying not to hyperventilate at the fact that she was sitting in the same car with her crush. Alya and Lyra looked on in amusement, and the boys were engrossed in their own conversation.

When they arrived at the mansion Lyra bounded out of the car and up the front steps, clearly excited by the prospect of cooking. Adrien merely shook his head and shrugged in amusement when the others gave him a questioning look.

"She's always been like that," he said by way of explanation.

"Come on you guys!" Lyra called, "Lunch isn't going to make itself you know!"

"She seems so eager to cook for us," Alya remarked.

"I'm surprised she even knows how to cook," Nino commented, "Like, you don't know how to cook Adrien,"

Adrien blushed sheepishly, "I have people that do that for me, whether I want them to or not. Father insists."

"But, your cousin's rich too. So like, shouldn't she have a bunch of people to do stuff for her like you do?"

Adrien shrugged, "As far back as I can remember, Lyra's always been very independent. She likes what she likes, and if she doesn't like something you better believe you'll hear about it. Besides, if what she's told me is true she often gets back home long after her father's staff have already left. She probably needed to learn some basic cooking skills so she didn't starve."

"But," Alya countered, "if she's the daughter of Maron Composeur, shouldn't she have enough money to order food?"

"Maybe," Adrien conceded, "I really don't know what her day-to-day life is like. We don't talk as often as you might think."

"Adrien!" Lyra called from the stoop, "If you don't bring your friends here within ten seconds I'm going to tell them about your third birthday party!"

Adrien blanched, "Come on," he said quickly, "We better go now. If there's one thing you need to know about my cousin, it's that she doesn't make idle threats."

"Well hold on," Alya put a hand on his shoulder, "I'm kind of curious about the whole 'third birthday' incident."

"Me too," Nino added.

"Please," Adrien all but begged, "It's something I really don't want to relive."

Alya and Nino chuckled, "Alright dude, we'll get going."

"Adie, could you give our guests a small tour while I start things in the kitchen?" Lyra's sweet tone was one that implied that though it was phrased as a request, the wish was actually a command.

"Of course cousin," Adrien replied as she dashed off to her destination. He held out a hand, "Shall we?"

The trio nodded and headed off with their host. Adrien showed them everything on the first floor from the lavish living room to the back patio that lead to his father's private gardens. Led by the savory smell of cooking food, they ended the mini-tour at the kitchen: where Lyra was once again singing along to her music. Luckily for them, it was in French this time.

"Some one holds me safe and warm. Horses dance through a silver storm. Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory…"

She positively glided across the floor, gathering plates and other necessities and setting them to the side, stirring at the mixture in the skillet without a seeming care about it. Whenever she had to stand still, she often arched one leg behind her, practicing different poses with her footwork. From the vantage point of everyone else, it wasn't quite clear what she was doing, other than adding the flavoring. As Lyra let the sauce simmer into the mixture she placed the spoon aside and began a chain of pique turns across the kitchen space. She ended in the fifth position right before her unknowing audience, eyes closed and breathing measured; the music still playing in the background.

The quintet began clapping, "Bravo," Alya and Nino applauded.

Startled Lyra opened her eyes and fumbled a bit in her position. She recovered quickly enough and sunk into the proper bowing position: a very deep curtsy at the knees with the torso held upright. Just as quickly she rose to her feet and turned back to the stove, stirring a bit more and switching her music player off.

"My," she remarked, "that was a quick tour."

"We got distracted by the food," Adrien replied.

Lyra quirked a brow, "Ah-hah. Well, grab the plates off the counter and we'll head to the dining room to eat," she snagged a potholder and grabbed the handle of the skillet.

Adrien did as his cousin bade and they followed her into the dining room. The massive table dominated the view, and the high-backed chairs made the setting seem more daunting than inviting. Lyra placed the skillet on a wooden holder she'd already set down.

"Alright then, I'm going to go get some silverware, why don't you all take a seat?" as Lyra headed back to the kitchen she touched Alya's shoulder and gave her a meaningful look. A silent conversation passed between them, with Lyra's eyes flickering to both her cousin and Marinette too quickly for either subject to notice. Alya smiled and nodded, and Lyra continued on her way.

"Hey Nino," Alya grabbed his arm as he was about to take a seat, "Come sit by me, I wanted to talk to you about another film collaboration: this one's for the Ladyblog,"

Alya managed to wrangle him into two seats near the end of the table. Adrien took his usual spot at the head, leaving Marinette to fumble choosing a seat. Luckily Lyra returned at just the right moment.

"Marin," she mock chided, "Take a seat already, we're losing daylight here!" she guided Marinette to the seat next to Adrien and took the seat to her right.

"Okay everyone, dig in!" she distributed the forks to the other four and then pulled out a pair of metal chopsticks.

"You eat with those things?" Nino asked.

"These 'things', are called chopsticks," Lyra replied, "And I find I just don't enjoy my Asian cuisine as much with western eating utensils. Now come on, take as much as you like: I made plenty," to illustrate, Lyra used her chopsticks to take out some of the stir-fry and put it on her plate.

The others followed suit and were soon happily slurping their noodles or chewing their chicken.

"Mmm," said Alya.

"Dude! Where did you learn to make this?" Nino asked.

Lyra smiled, "It's nothing really. I hated having leftover take-out every night so I asked my father's chef one weekend if they knew any recipes that I could learn how to cook. They told me the easiest dish to make was stir-fry. I know at least ten different combinations of ingredients to make different stir-fry types, but this one remains my favorite. Stir-fry is awesome because you can prep all the ingredients on a day off and then throw them all together later in the week."

"Sweet! Maybe you could give my mom this recipe?" Nino replied through a mouthful of noodle, "I swear, I need some variety or else I'm gonna blow!"

Lyra chuckled, "I'll see what I can do," surreptitiously she winked at Alya, who nodded and proceeded to otherwise engage Nino.

She turned to Marinette and her cousin, "So, Marin, Alya tells me you design your own clothes?"

"Me?" Marinette squeaked, turning bright red.

The blonde gave a dainty giggle, "Of course you, who else would I be talking to about clothing design?"

"Aren't both your father and uncle famous designers?"

Lyra rolled her eyes, "True as that may be, they're never around!" she groaned, "So who else am I going to talk to about it? Adrien knows almost nothing to the practical side of fashion. He just shows up and is ordered to look good!"

"Hey!" Adrien protested, "I know a few things about fashion design!"

His faux-doppelganger raised a cynical brow, "Oh really? Tell me three different types of stitches.

Adrien blanched and wisely shut his mouth at that. Lyra turned her attention back to the pig-tailed girl sitting next to her, "So, you do design don't you?"

Marinette flushed even deeper, "I dabble a little. I've even entered a few pieces in local contests."

"like the derby hat?" Lyra pressed, "I'm sorry, but both my father and I got a picture of it shortly after the contest. My father was impressed; he's not easily impressed."

"Really?" Marinette said hopefully.

"Mhmm," Lyra nodded with a smile, "Say, how do you feel about designing costumes?"

"Costumes?"

"Yeah," Lyra nodded over at her cousin, "I've been dying to take Adrien here to a Con over in the states. But it's not right to experience your first Con without cosplaying right?"

"Cosplaying?"

"Costume play: cosplay. It's where you dress up like a character from your favorite anime or other show and you pretend to be the character while at the convention."

"You like anime?" Marinette asked, surprised by such a revelation.

"Sure," Lyra replied, "and so does Adrien. Playing around outside couldn't happen all the time when we were little: so when it rained we'd stay inside and watch Studio Ghibli films in the entertainment center! It was awesome! And the animation style?" she sighed, "To this day I have yet to find an artist whose style rivals Myazaki-sensei's. Hey, do you think you could make Adrien and me costumes? I know technically cosplays are supposed to be made by hand but I neither have the time nor the talent, please?"

Marinette simply stared at the girl. Lyra simply smiled and tapped the side of her nose: inclining her head at her cousin, who wasn't paying attention. Realization smacked the raven-haired girl over the back of the head: Lyra was trying to give her a point of conversation with Adrien, and if she ended up making a costume for him, time to meet up and hang out after school –hopefully just the two of them! She squealed inwardly and tried to contain her excitement, she had to play this cool.

"Well," Marinette put a hand to her chin in thought, "I suppose I could do it, if you didn't mind me putting my own personal spin on the outfit. Was there any character you had in mind?"

Lyra bit her lip, trying to pick out a character, "Hmm, I'd love to do something cute: like Mew Mew Ichigo from _Tokyo Mew Mew_. But that sort style doesn't really suit me," she said self-depreciatingly, rubbing the back of her head with her hand and a sheepish grin, "Maybe something iconic, like Death the Kid from _Soul Eater_ , or maybe Clover from _Totally Spies_ , or" she gasped with excitement, "I've got it! Can you make me Tamaki Souh from _Ouran High School Host Club_? A gender-bent one: with a full black skirt instead of slacks under the uniform shirt and jacket," she was positively _tittering_ , "Oh! And if Adrien decides to do an Ouran Cosplay we can spray our hair orange and be the Hitachiin twins! I'm so excited already!"

Lyra squealed and flapped her arms about in glee.

"Hey, hey hold on a sec Lyra," Adrien cut in, "Don't ask too much of her, she probably has other projects to work on first,"

"Oh no, I have nothing pressing right now," Marinette tried to say, but Adrien didn't hear her.

"We don't want her to _unravel_ ," he continued, "Or worse yet: _fall apart at the seams_."

Lyra groaned, "Bad pun!"

Adrien chuckled, "Hey, I thought it was pretty good,"

The other blonde snorted, "Comedians always think their jokes are gold, problem is that in the end it's almost always fool's gold instead of the real thing."

"Hey," Alya said, grabbing everyone's attention, "What are we all talking about?"

"Adrien's making horrible puns again!" Lyra half-whined, half-tattled to Nino, "Make him stop!"

"Dudette, I've never heard my man Adrien make a bad joke in his life," Nino came to the boy's defense, "Come to think of it, I've rarely heard him ever make _any_ joke."

Adrien rolled his eyes. Lyra laughed and turned back to Marinette.

"But really, will you make our costumes?"

"Sure, why not?" Marinette replied, "I'll just need the two of you to give me your measurements and a picture of what you want the costume to be based on."

"Great!" Lyra replied, "Adrien and I will stop by some afternoon when you're free so you can get our measurements!"

Marinette blushed, "You guys have busy schedules I'm sure," she ignored Alya's muffled snort, "I'm sure your fathers have your measurements, you can just have them sent to me along with the photos."

Lyra shook her head and grinned mischievously, "I don't trust a designer who doesn't take the time to measure out her clients herself when she accepts commissions. Adrien and I will make an appointment with you like we would any other designer. And of course, we'll pay you for all materials and services rendered."

"That's really not necessary," Marinette sputtered out, "Just think of it as a favor between friends."

Lyra glanced at her cousin, "Marin, we're very thankful you'd be willing to do that for us, but cosplay material is usually much more expensive than regular wear material. There must be something we could do to repay you for taking this on?"

Marinette blushed, "If I think of something I'll let you know!" she said a bit too brightly.

Alya, noticing her friend's floundering, wisely decided to change the subject, "So Lyra, what are you going to be doing after school today?"

"I'm going to the dance studio at my school's sister academy to practice with the others!" Lyra nearly squealed again, "I'm so excited I get to dance for hours with no interruptions! Father said no costume shoots while I'm here, that's like a whole week of stolen time!"

Adrien cast a worried glance at his cousin, noting her slightly labored breathing. He stood up from his chair and went behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Easy does it there cuz," he said, helping her slow her breathing back to a normal rate, "All good?"

"All good," Lyra affirmed, "Hey!" she said almost as rapidly returning to hyperventilation, "I just had an awesome idea!"

"What?" the other four asked.

"When we get back to the school, why don't we invite the whole class to come and watch my company practice our routine tomorrow afternoon! It'll be a great experience, and my girls and I would love the feedback."

The quartet glanced back and forth at each other. Finally Adrien said, "I don't see why we can't invite them, why not?"

Without a real reason to protest the other three nodded in agreement. Lyra leapt out of her seat with joy and glomped onto her her cousin, "Thanks Adie!" she said planting a kiss on his cheek.

The next afternoon brought the entire class together in front of the school. Adrien had been given directions as to where to take them from Lyra. And together they all set off, walking a few blocks to an antiquated building.

Upon first glance it was hard to believe that this was the site of an incredible dance academy, but many of the buildings in Paris were historic landmarks by now so they didn't really rebuild: they renovated. The lady at the front desk was kind enough to lead them to the dance studio Lyra and her company were practicing in. The inside of the room was massive, and everywhere they looked leotard-clad females were stretching, pliéting, or awaiting instruction. Surprisingly, there was no music to let the outsiders know what they were doing.

"Adie!" Lyra's voice cut through the general din. They saw her in a black leotard with matching slippers, a pair of ivory tights over her legs and no glasses to be seen, "I'm so glad you guys could make it!"

"Hey," Adrien greeted as the girl pulled him into a hug.

"Hold on," Alya cut in, "Where are your glasses?"

Lyra cocked her head at the girl a moment before laughing, "Contacts," she said knowingly, tapping at the corner of one of her eyes, "I don't particularly like wearing them, but it's a necessary evil in this business."

"Anyways," Adrien continued, "We're all here you know. Where do you want us?"

"Hmm," Lyra put a finger to her lip, "Over there," she pointed to a small section of the room not quite a corner and not quite in the middle of the floor.

"Thanks," Adrien replied.

"Hold on, before you head over there," Lyra halted them, "There's someone I want you to meet," she called out in another language, most likely English, and a small dark-haired girl came gliding over.

"Everyone," she continued in French, "I'd like you to meet my dance partner Isabella, Bella for short."

Wide blue eyes scanned the crowd, looking a bit distrustful at the newcomers. Lyra switched over to English once again, explaining who they were and what they were doing there. Bella's eyes shifted over to Lyra and studied her a moment before breaking out into a sweet smile and nodding acceptingly. Lyra continued speaking rapidly, and Bella grew more and more excited with each word. When Lyra finished Bella gave a big grin and skipped off to the other girls.

"What did you say to her?" Adrien asked as Lyra led them to their spot.

"We want to show you the grand Pas de deux we've been working on," Lyra explained, "Bella and I have been working on it all year and when I told her I wanted to show you guys she rushed off to inform the other dancers."

"What song are you dancing to?" Alya cut in.

Lyra smiled, "A French dubbed song from Don Bluth's _Thumbelina_ ," Lyra replied, "We've rehearsed enough that even people who don't understand French in the company know what cues to come in on."

"Sounds tricky," Alya said dubiously.

Lyra winked at the group, "You'll see just what we can do," turning to address the rest of the room she hollered, _"_ _Alright girls! Places_ _!_ "

She and Bella took center stage, and with a quick nod over to the one controlling the speaker system the music began. Bella, being the female, started dancing while Lyra merely followed behind. When the vocals began Lyra took Bella's hands and started leading her around the floor. The entire routine was undeniably romantic, fueled further by Bella's expression as she gazed at Lyra. More than a few times, Lyra had to dance with Bella wrapped around her like a vine. It was a testament to how strong Lyra said she was playing all the male roles.

All too soon the song came to an end: Lyra lifting Bella high into the air and spinning around with her; slowly lowering the smaller girl to wrap around her body and end in a low dip. The invited group, save Chloe and by extension Sabrina, rising to their feet in a standing ovation. Lyra set Bella on her feet and they took their bows.

"Well?" Lyra asked as she trotted over to them: chest heaving ever so slightly, "What did you think?"

Kim, Alix, Alya and the rest of them showered the girl with praise. Marinette noticed Adrien looking at his cousin with a proud, yet also very concerned expression.

"You were fantastic," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder, "But don't you think that routine's a little," he searched for the right word, "taxing?"

Lyra shook her head, "That's why I practice it so much. It gets a little easier every time."

"Are you planning on showcasing this for anything?" Adrien pressed.

"At the big showcase at the end of the semester," Lyra replied.

That seemed to set Adrien off, "And how do you expect to hold up under that king of pressure?" he demanded to know.

Lyra took a deep breath and sighed, "Adrien, I know you're concerned. But I'm fine, and I'm going to be fine then too. Relax," she told him.

Bella chose that moment to come to their side, asking Lyra something in English. Lyra replied with a favorable tone and that made Bella smile widely. With a reassuring squeeze, Lyra pushed through the crowd to Marinette's side.

"So," she began, "I haven't heard what you thought yet. Care to share?"

"What can I say that everyone else hasn't?" Marinette asked in reply, "That was amazing! They way you too moved together, I thought I was watching living poetry."

Lyra's cheeks flushed a little, "You're just saying that," she tried to pawn the compliment off.

"I mean it!" Marinette protested, "You guys were incredible!"

Lyra stared at her a moment before sweeping her up into a crushing, and slightly sweaty from exertion, hug, "Thanks Marin!" she nearly squealed, "Bella will love hearing that!"

After being set back on her feet, Marinette watched Lyra head back to her partner, and noticed the sharp glare the girl was sending her way. Lyra began telling Bella what Marinette had said, and Marinette noticed how the girl was less receptive to her praise than she had been to that of the others. She still smiled, but it looked forced.

At this point another girl, dark haired and dark skinned came over and greeted Lyra with a hug. They conversed in English for a bit before Lyra gestured to the group of students. Arm in arm they waked over with huge grins on their faces.

"Everyone," Lyra began, "This is my best friend Cassandra."

"Nice to meet'cha," the other girl said in fluent French, "But you can call me Cassie,"

Adrien was a little surprised, "You know French?"

Cassie gave a lackadaisical smile, "I've been friends with Lyra since she started school. She didn't know English too well then so we decided to help each other out: I taught her English, she taught me French. Pretty easy when you're only seven y'know?"

Marinette saw Lyra grimace slightly out the corner of her eye and made a mental note to ask her what it had been about when she had a chance.

"Do you guys dance together sometimes?" Alix asked.

"Not often, because we're both on the taller side" Cassie replied, "But sometimes when practice is over we dance together just for the fun of it."

"You dance for fun after sweating for hours?" Chloe gasped, "I couldn't imagine even doing that much!"

"Yeah," Marinette muttered under her breath, "Because you don't do any work at all," both fortunately and unfortunately it was loud enough to be heard by everyone in the close group: causing the other students to laugh and Chloe to glare at her.

"Whatever," Chloe dismissed the dig haughtily, "You're just upset because I have way too much of a social life to be bothered with those sorts of things, unlike you who sits at home doing nothing."

Sabrina and she were the only two who laughed, and Lyra's eyes narrowed dangerously. A side glance was cast at Cassandra and the two shared conspiratorially devious grins.

"Chloe," Lyra began sweetly, a little too sweetly to be genuine, "There's one more routine we'd like to put on for the group, but we don't have a figurehead to dance around. Would you like to help us?"

"Why should I?" Chloe replied snottily.

"Because," Cassie added, "it's a part that can only be played by someone who looks like you."

"What do I have to do?" Chloe's eyes were alit with interest now that her ego had perked.

"Nothing much," Lyra assured her, "Just put on the costume we give you and look," she shared a grin with Cassie again, " _beautiful_."

Adrien had sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He loved his cousin dearly, but she was a bit overprotective of the people she cared about and had a vindictive streak a mile wide. He went to object but Chloe beat him to the punch.

"I have to wear some icky costume that someone else has already worn? I don't think so!" she said, wrinkling her nose and sounding disgusted.

"It's never been worn per say," Lyra was quick to say, "we had to try it on the dancer who was supposed to wear it originally, but it was ill-fitting and didn't give us the effect we wanted. It should fit your figure much better,"

Chloe appeared to think it over for a moment, "Alright, I'll do it," she finally decided, "Since it's more than apparent your company needs all the help it can get."

Lyra and Cassie's mouths dropped open in shock for a moment as Chloe flounced past them, intent on retrieving her costume. The two dancer's expressions turned murderous for another second before twisting into cruel, evil smiles.

"Of course," they simpered, "Right this way."

Cassandra led her off into the changing room, flashing a thumbs up behind her as she went. Lyra nodded and turned to the other girls.

" _Alright ladies_ ," she said as she called them over to her, " _We're going to perform one more number for my cousin and his friends: and this is the one we're going to do…_ "

A few moments later, a line of dancers blocked the vision of the seated group. Behind them other dancers got into place. At Lyra's command someone started the music and the girls split down the middle, withdrawing like a curtain beginning a show. A blast of trumpets rang out, joined by pounding drums. There came an announcer talking about Berkley Beetle and Poucelina. Adrien gave a small but sharp gasped when he recognized the song and realized what Lyra was doing.

"Miss Scarabeé," he whispered, horrified as Chloe appeared dressed in an outrageous white ball gown complete with wings and antennae in a hat perched on her head.

Lyra, Cassandra, and three other girls of around the same height came sliding in and performing a very well choreographed routine. Then the beetle, which Lyra was proudly playing the role of, began to sing. He was telling Poucelina, or Chloe in this case, how everyone was here to see her because she was so beautiful.

It was going well for all involved, until Lyra started spinning Chloe around, while the other dancers began ripping pieces of the costume off. Eventually Chloe was left in nothing but her underwear while the other dancers, and her classmates, looked on. Even Lyra looked shocked, though Adrien couldn't tell whether or not she was actually surprised or just feigning it for the sake of the performance. Mortified beyond belief, Chloe tried to run, but the other dancers cornered her at every turn, forcing her to stay where she was. Then the song began laughing at and mocking her for not having the things that made bugs, in the other bugs' opinions, beautiful. It ended with Lyra's character calling her ugly and sweeping Chloe's legs out from under her.

When the music stopped Chloe rushed to her feet and back into the changing room, crying dramatically all the way. Lyra was high-fiving everyone who had taken part in the cruel and humiliating prank, laughing along with them. Adrien and the rest of the group stood up, walking towards the blonde and her friend.

"Lyra," Adrien began calmly, though barely suppressing his fury, "We need to talk,"

"Save me the lecture, dad," Lyra waved him off, "I don't want to hear it."

"Well I think you need to," he said, "That was totally uncalled for,"

Lyra scoffed, "Yeah right," she looked at the others who had disapproving expressions on their faces, "You guys are going to side with him after everything she's done to you?"

The group turned mixed, those that had been akumatized at one point because something Chloe had done looking around instead of meeting Lyra's gaze straight on. Adrien looked shocked and confused, he'd never told Lyra anything, "How did you-"

Lyra held up a hand and silenced him, "Because I know that family, and more importantly I know _Chloe_. So if anyone needed to be taken down a peg or two it was her."

"How dare you!" Chloe shrieked as she came out of the room, fully dressed and seething, "When my father hears about this he'll-"

"He'll what?" Lyra said as she crossed her arms over her chest, tone defiant and challenging. Her expression was cold as ice as she stared down the teenage brat, "I'm a French citizen in case you forgot, my father is far more powerful than yours is, and last time I checked: it wasn't against the law to play an embarrassing prank on anyone, even the mayor's daughter," she chuckled superiorly, "And even if it was made a law, you can't arrest me for it if it occurred before the law was put into place: retroactive arrests will only make the public hate your father and choose someone else for the next elections."

She saw the color drain from the other blonde's face, and laughed once more, "Checkmate _your highness_. I win."

Chloe sputtered for a few minutes before shrieking once more and storming off, Sabrina following close behind. Lyra turned her expression on the rest of the group, "And as for you guys, Cassie has something she wants to say."

Lyra's friend stepped up, "In all actuality, it wasn't meant to be that bad. There's a set of underclothes that go under the dress so when it comes apart like that those sorts of things don't happen. Chloe simply refused to wear it so her embarrassment is as much her fault as it is ours."

Adrien glanced from nina to Lyra, "You mean you guys didn't know?"

"I didn't," Lyra replied, "Cassie did but she couldn't tell me before the song started," she sighed, "Look, if you really feel it was out of line, I'll apologize. I won't like a single moment of it, but I'll do it for you: and only for you cousin."

"What I want to know was why you did it in the first place," Alya cut in.

Lyra shrugged, "She insulted Marin, I couldn't let her get away with it."

"You did that for me?" Marinette squeaked.

Lyra nodded, "It didn't feel right, letting her insult you like that. You're my friend Marin, I look after my friends."

"She's right," Adrien added, "Lyra will look after the people she cares about: even if it means interfering where she's not supposed to," he turned to the rest of the group, "And now that you know how bad her temper gets, I suggest you stay on her good side."

The other classmates laughed and started to disperse: each of them having other things to accomplish. Only Alya, Nino, Adrien, and Marinette stayed behind with Lyra and her friends.

Lyra pulled Marinette to the side, "I'm sorry I didn't let you handle that yourself," she said contritely, "I just, I have this really bad protective streak: I don't like to see my friends, or anyone else I care about get hurt. Do you forgive me for butting in?"

Marinette shook her head and smiled, "I admit, I could have handled that myself, but I thank you for your concern. Plus, it would have been really funny if it had gone according to plan."

Lyra smirked cattishly, "You think so?"

Marinette nodded, "Yeah, so I think I can find it in my heart to forgive you."

The grin that stretched across Lyra's face could have lit up the Eiffel Tower itself. She swept up Marinette and nearly tossed her into the air, crushing her into a hug, "Thanks Marin!" she said gratefully.

When Marinette was back on her feet, she suppressed a shudder: something didn't feel right. It was a bad premonition, something was going to happen. Marinette suppressed a groan, there was only one bad thing that happened on this scale in Paris these days: someone was going to get akumatized.

Running feet hit the pavement as fast as they could. Some ugly hateful emotion was welling up inside the girl's body. Hate, hate, hate, it chanted inside her. She wanted an outlet, one better than her usual. She wanted justice, she wanted revenge, she wanted to assert who the special one was.

From somewhere far off in the distance, metal plates were retracted to reveal a wide window to a room filled with butterflies.

* * *

So yes we get a villain in the next chapter. Fights will be fought, secrets will be revealed. What happens next? Not even the author has a real clue!

However, reviews are much appreciated. Thanks!


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